Divers in Kenting (墾丁) are trying to find a missing estuary cod, amid fears that it might have been caught and consumed at a local restaurant.
Diving coach Tsai Yung-chuen (蔡永春) said the cod was raised in a fish-breeding pond off the coast of Pingtung County, but the pond was destroyed by Typhoon Morakot in 2009. The fish survived the storm and was frequently spotted swimming in Houbi Lake (後壁湖) in Kenting — until about a month ago.
Tsai said the fish was only about 30cm long when it was discovered four years ago, but had grown to about 1m last year.
It was not afraid to come near visitors wanting to take photos, and was featured in this year’s calendar published by the Taiwan Coral Reef Society, he added.
Tsai said diving coaches in Kenting reported last month that they had not seen the fish around the area it used to frequent.
“You can only see the fish in southern Taiwan,” he said. “People spend a lot of money to go to Australia to see [fish like this].”
“Optimists think the fish may have just moved to another area,” Tsai said. “However, for the pessimists, they think it might have been caught and sold to a seafood restaurant for about NT$10,000 and consumed unwittingly by customers.”
Tsai and other diving coaches also expressed concern that the disappearance of the estuary cod might affect their businesses, because a lot of tourists go diving just to see the special creature.
Taiwan Coral Reef Society chairman Cheng Ming-shiou (鄭明修), who is also a researcher at Academia Sinica, said it was not easy to find a large estuary cod.
“People should not be short-sighted. How much can you earn from selling such a fish? If we keep it, it can bring in more tourist revenue. Why do they want to kill a cash cow for Kenting?” Cheng asked. “All sea lovers should make it an obligation to preserve the diversity of the coral reef.”
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